The Storm Within
by Laliel
Summary: Missing scene from the boat, where Io is teaching Perseus how to fight the Medusa. Oneshot.


**The Storm Within**

**Ship:** _Perseus/Io_

**Rated: M** _– Some Sensuality._

_Missing scene from Clash of the Titans. I don't know what they cut out from that boat scene but the continuity seemed off to me. One moment only her hand is on his chest, the next, his hand is over hers. Something's missing…so here it is._

**On the boat, crossing into the Underworld to Medusa's lair:**

"Do you think she'll hand you her head? She won't be gracious about it."

Perseus knelt on the wooden floor of the ship. He could still feel where Io had slapped his face, a small burning patch by his jaw. Io turned from him, her dark hair blending into the darkness of the space surrounding them.

"One look in her eyes and you'll turn to stone."

Perseus stood, watching as Io vanished completely. He paused, listening…feeling the area near to him. There. A small noise like a snake gliding over stone. Perseus darted to the left as Io appeared in front of him, her right hand reaching out to his face again. But he was too fast for her this time.

"Good."

She placed her hands on his chest and pushed him backwards, causing Perseus to land heavily against a supporting beam. Her hands were warm through his tunic and armor. Perseus felt something stir deep within himself. A feeling, a touch, a glance, a desire…

"Try not to enjoy this too much."

Io's dark eyes captivated him. Like the night sky when the storm was just approaching.

"I'm trying to help you live."

She darted away, back into the black bowels of the vessel.

"Don't look at me."

Perseus chased her, keeping to the shadows. She tried to elude him by running to the side, but Perseus could feel his father's strength and abilities aiding him now. Io tried again to hit his face, but each time he moved a fraction of a second faster than her hand. He caught her, twisting her around, and both landed upon the floor. The exertion caused them breathe heavily, and against his will Perseus noted the rise and fall of her body, pinned beneath his. Io looked at him, her eyes nearly glowing with pleasure that he had managed to avoid being "killed" a third time.

If her hand had been warm before, Perseus could never have imagined how heated her body was. He could feel her heartbeat, like that of a mourning dove, beating solidly and yet gently. Suddenly, it was no longer friendly training between the two. Io seemed to sense the change in his stance, that his eyes were no longer playful. A long, intense moment passed, one in which their gazes were locked. Io felt her own desires rise, ones that stemmed from years of loneliness and grief. Here, under the weight of a man's body, particularly a man she admired and cared for, it would be so easy to cave. But looking into his eyes she saw his power, so raw and untapped, that it made her reject her desire.

Slowly sliding her left hand down to the middle of his chest, her voice whispered.

"Ease your storm."

Perseus knew her meaning. Slowly rising his body from hers, he closed his eyes and focused on slowing his rapid heartbeat…and his own longings. Several moments passed and Io watched his face visibly calm. He was no longer aroused by the rushing of blood, heat, and their bodies pressed together.

It was moments like these that Io remembered the child in Perseus, how she had always longed to reveal herself to him but had not. So many years of watching him grow from a baby to an adult…and one who was the child of Zeus and capable of so much for the world. Perhaps it was foolish but Io had always wanted to stroke his face and now, with their being alone, she could. The fingers of her right hand brushed against his forehead in a whisper of a touch.

Perseus kept his eyes closed but Io could feel his heartbeat begin to rise. Long years ago Perseus' own father had tried to seduce her. Memories of his hands and mouth and what he very nearly did to her had almost made Io bitter to men. But watching Perseus grow up had changed her heart. She knew he was different. Io felt in her heart that if he tried to take her, she would let him.

But to her amazement, all Perseus did was open his eyes, lean down, her hand still pressed to his chest, and gently kiss her forehead. He was about to pull away, she could sense his body coiling for it, when her hand slid from his forehead to his neck. Her fingers stroked his short hair and Perseus could feel his storm rising again. There was too much contact, too much heat, for him to ignore what Io wanted.

Her eyes seemed to swallow him and Perseus was barely aware that his mouth now rested on hers. He clasped her left hand in his right, moving it out from beneath his body. Io knew that her choice for this moment was terrible, but her human body ignored her mind. Io opened her mouth to him, feeling his armor press into her, yet he kept his hands away from her body.

Perseus knew the truth of their situation. He was a demi-god with untold abilities and she was a human made immortal by the gods. He knew that children born of such a union would in danger from Zeus and the others. Yet he couldn't bring himself to pull away. Not yet.

Io still held his hand, her fingers intertwined and her palm rubbing against his. Her right hand pulled him closer, her hand clasped about his neck. Perseus' mouth enticed her, leading her down a dangerous path. She could feel his heart, hot like a coal and pulsating against her chest. And then, Io began to notice something. Perseus' skin began to take on a shimmering quality, much like his sword. And suddenly fear rose in her mind. Once he was beyond a certain point, now fast approaching, Io knew that she would not leave this cabin until he had taken her.

She turned her head, breaking both eye and mouth contact with him. Her ragged breathing matched his, her face flushed from the rush of blood. She glanced at him; Perseus seemed no better. His eyes held an almost lustful look, but he quickly shut them and pushed away from her. Io reached a hand to his chest again.

"Forgive me, Perseus."

He was quiet and when he opened his eyes she could see the calm that resided there.

"You were not at fault, Io. I should have known better."

Io shook her head, her dark hair moving over the wooden floor with her movements. Perseus placed a finger over her mouth to silence her protests.

"There will come a time, Io, when neither of us will be at fault."

He then slid his hand over hers. Beneath both palms his heart beat steady and warm. Io tentatively smiled up at him and Perseus answered her look in kind. The storm had passed by.


End file.
